Software

Churches use many apps for presenting media, tracking membership, helping with budgets, and even updating their websites. Some churches also offer a church app primarily for people who attend their church. They contract with a church app provider to make an app that is branded for their church and focused on the needs of people in the pews.

It's hard to believe that YouVersion is celebrating its 10th anniversary, yet at the same time, most of us can't imagine life before this revolutionary Bible app. Whether connecting with scripture through audio in the car, doing a Bible study with your kids, or sharing your Sunday service bulletin, the YouVersion Bible app has certainly changed the world for the better.

Have you taken stock of how secure your church is from theft or violence due to unauthorized access to your building? It is of paramount importance that your members and staff are safe when they come to church. When members and their families are worshiping they should be and feel comfortable that the church premises is secure.

There’s no doubt that texting is the most direct way to make contact with people today. Texting, by nature, is also a more intimate form of communication, more personal than email. This might be the reason texting can be extremely effective for churches.

In the spirit of generosity, Life.Church, Compassion International, and a number of Christian organizations are working together on a new open source initiative called Open Digerati. This initiative will unify people who are kingdom-minded and skilled in technology, giving them a place to serve the Church with their God-given talent.

As we become more dependent on technology, security threats grow and change on a daily basis and user data continues to be vulnerable. This is true for churches, just as it is for any other organization or business. Learning to keep online data and accounts safe and being reminded to regularly update security protocols is increasingly important for pastors and church communicators.

With the emergence of smart assistants like Siri, Alexa, and Google Assistant, how can these AI platforms assist pastors and church tech staff with productivity? Smart assistants, devices, and speakers do have features that could assist with church administrative planning and personal organization tasks like calendaring, as well as providing conferencing features for small meetings. And connected offices using smart assistants and smart speakers to help with productivity are on the rise, just as connected homes are growing as well.

Apps are an indispensable tool for accessing digital information and services quickly. There is an app for anything and everything, including churches. Why are apps so useful? Is it because they are fast and easy to use? Or because they sidestep the trouble of opening a browser, logging on to a website, and then searching for a desired function or feature? Of course, websites are amazing resources and necessary components of any healthy communications system, but when it comes to performance, speed, and agility - apps are definitely out in front.